Full Race Report: 50K Texas Trail Run and Recovery

The official results are in and the Garmin data has been uploaded. To see the Garmin results click here.

Official Time: 06:18:33

Overall Rank: 71/184

Age Rank(30-34M): 5/10

Garmin Time: 6:10:12

Total Calories: 3,645

Distance: 31.53 Miles

Avg Heart Rate: 148 bpm

Best Mile Pace: 9:13/mi (mile 5)

Worst Mile Pace: 16:46/mi (mile 27)

Pre-Race:

I woke up at 4:15 am. I had a solid 6 or so hours of sleep and felt great and ready to go. I had a whole wheat bagel with peanut butter and a big mug of coffee. I had about an hour drive so I took some water for the road. I walked outside to the car and the first thing I noticed was that it was freaking freezing. The second thing I noticed was that my car was covered in frost. So, I started the car and went back in the house for 10 minutes and had another cup of joe.

After an uneventful drive I pulled into the parking lot and went looking for the packet pick-up area. It was inside a lodge and I was thankful because it was even colder as the park is right next to a big lake. The race director told us it was 24 degrees! I got the packet and went back to my car to relax and get the gear ready. I decided to ditch my fanny pack since the aid stations were loaded up with Gels, HEED, and Gatorade. I also decided to ditch my wind pants and just run in the Under Armor compression pants (aka .. man tights!). Both of these ended up being good calls. It was about 10 minutes to race time and I found the drop bag area and headed down to the start.

First Loop: 6.5 Miles:

The gun sounded and we were off. The first mile was on the main road leading into the park and I found a nice mid-9 pace and a bunch of people doing about the same pace. I meet a lady who lived in Kingwood and she was an experienced trail runner. She had done this race before and gave me the lowdown on the terrain. We ran together for maybe the first 5 miles. Through out the day I meet a ton of extremely nice and helpful people... just a great overall experience. I ran past the first aid station since I had my nathan's hydration belt with Gatorade. I finished the first loop and was sweating like crazy despite the fact that it was still freezing! So I hit my drop bag and tossed my knit hat and gloves into one of the compartments and immediately began to shiver!

Second Loop: 12.3 Miles:

The course had us run back the same way we just came fr about a 1/2 mile and then we crossed the road and got into the heart of the trails. This loop offered a wide variety of terrain: Step uphills, steep downhills, narrow trails, jeep trails, rocky trails, sandy trails, wooden bridges over wetlands .... It was such a great place to run! At one point you went up a steep incline and when you got to the top you were looking right at the lake. Then you continued for a few miles around the lake. BTW, this lake has gators in it! I was told they have over 75 gators!

It was on this loop I meet a guy, Steve, from Dallas at maybe a mile in. Real nice guy, he had done this race before and also 50 miler so it was cool to talked to another Trail Runner. We ended up running together until the 2nd loop - I hit the can and he kept running. At this point having someone to talk with really helped. So about mile 19 we hit the starting area again and I was feeling good. I stopped for some salt and a banana, which I slammed down as I ran to my drop bag. I grabbed 2 more GU Chomps at my bag and was on my way!

Third Loop 12.3 Miles:

This loop was the exact same one I just did so at least I knew what to expect! As I talked about in yesterday's post this is where I got a little banged up. I was right around miles 21-22 and I slipped on a root and my right heel slammed into the hard ground. My IT Band basically got plucked like a bass guitar string and it immediately began to hurt like crazy. I stumbled up to the next aid station and a volunteer help me with some leg stretches on the IT band. It seemed to help and I went on my way. Well about a mile or so after that it started to hurt very bad again. I tried to walk it off and stretch a little more but it wasn't going to help. I could not get it loose. The weird thing was when I walked it hurt, when I ran it was tolerable. But if I tried to up my pace it hurt even more. If you look at my splits you can see where it all began to fall apart.

From miles 22 to 25 I managed to move okay. Not ideal but it was about a 12:30 to 13:00 minute pace and the IT band was still aching but I was getting used to it. About halfway into mile 25 the real fun began. Now for over 3 miles I had basically been dragging my right leg with my left leg. My right leg looked like Kevin Spacey's character in "The Usually Suspects". Well, my left quad and knee decided they had enough and just tightened up on my like you cannot believe. They did not go into full cramp mode but it felt like it would happen at any moment.

Now I still had over 5 miles to go and my legs were toast. Miles 26 and 27 were absolutely brutal. I can't say I was running or jogging at this point it was more like a shuffle. At this point I gave myself a stern talking too and said I was going to finish even if I had to crawl across the line. I detailed this fun journey in yesterday's post so I won't do it again. It was just brutal. I made it across the finish line, grabbed my finishers hoodie, and damn near collapsed but my legs couldn't bend so I was unable to even fall! I just slowly walked towards the pizza.

Post Race:

Housed 4 pieces of pizza and a bunch of Gatorade. I wasn't all that hungry but I knew I needed some food and still had to drive home. I ate standing up because I was afraid if I sat down that it would be too painful to stand up. I walked/shuffled out of the lodge towards my car and my left knee and quad were just screaming. They were screaming so loud that they drowned out the barking coming from my IT Band! I could see my car, it was about 200 yards away! It literally took me over 10 minutes to get there. I tossed all my stuff into the back seat and slide myself into the driver's seat and it felt so good to sit. I sat there for maybe another 10 minutes drinking water and letting the heat kick in - was only about 40 or so degrees. Made it home and took a shower and then an ice bath.

Final Thoughts:

It is 11pm the night after the race right now and my legs are still completely trashed. It is still painful to walk and I am seriously considering taking off work tomorrow. I am on a hydrocodone diet right now and they are barely helping. The IT band in my right leg is feeling better but my left leg is going to take some time to heal up. I was planning on starting training for my next Triathlon tomorrow but that is not going to happen. Hopefully, I will be able to go by next Monday.

Now all that being said I will do this race next year! Aside from all the pain at the end the first 4 or so hours were just awesome. I had a great time. I ended up finishing 71st out of 184 racers and that was with a bum leg for 9 miles and 2 bum legs for 5 miles. If I wouldn't have slipped and got hurt I was on pace for a top 20 finish. When I hit the finish line I was in pain but I wasn't at all tired. I still had a lot left in the tank. Now even if I wouldn't have gotten hurt I may still have hit "the wall" somewhere along those last 9 miles. But I really will not know until I give it another shot, right?

Thanks for hanging with me on that rather long winded post!

Tomorrow and the probably the next few days are going to be used to recover. My indoor trainer came on Friday so I will take the down time to get it set up (assuming I can walk tomorrow).

Thanks for Reading,

Jeff

Mini-Race Report: 31.1 Mile Texas Trail Run

I am absolutely beat and need a nap something fierce so I am going to give a quick recap and then I will do a more detailed Race Report tomorrow. Sorry! But to start off the picture above is what I found when I got home and took of my shoes and socks! Good Times!

The temperature at start time was 24 degrees. My HR was 160 BPM because of my shivering. The course was a 6.5 mile loop which we did once and a 12.3 mile loop which we did twice. The first 22 miles were a lot of fun and I was running along nice and strong. Legs felt great and I had a lot left in the tank. Then around mile 22 I slipped and my right foot slid off of a tree root and sent a stinging pain all the way up to my shoulder. IT Band ... hurt like hell! It probably would have been better to have just have fallen hit the ground because I think the awkwardness of me trying to keep my balance is what contributed to the injury. It probably didn't help either that my IT band had been a little tender anyways.

I dragged myself to the aid station which was luckily only about a 1/2 mile away. A volunteer (Thanks Dude - very cool of you!) helped stretch me out and it felt much better - for about a mile. Then it tightened up and I was in pain again. I just could not get it to loosen up and the fact that the temp only reached 44 degrees didn't help with that either. My pace dropped dramatically when this happened for the next 4 or so miles. Then right around mile 26 my left quad became so stiff from favoring the right leg that it started to hurt. At this point I tried to walk some but it was even more painful than running so I ran, if that is what you call it! Picture me as one of those fast walkers that go to the local malls every morning because that is what I looked like!

The last 5 miles were excruciatingly painful. I was not going to quit so I hardened up and tried to shuffle my beat up self to the finish. Long story short: I made it (-: . I feel like I have been hit by a truck. I took an ice bath (thanks for the suggestion Todd) when I got home and I have ice on my knees, quads, and IT band right now. And I can't wait to do another Trail Race. Seriously, aside from the injury I had an awesome time. The scenery was beautiful and I met a bunch of really cool people. I'll detail all the good tomorrow. Hell, the injury builds character - that's how I see it! When you see my numbers below you will understand why I might need to do this again!

My Garmin is in the car and I cannot drag myself out to get it but here are some of the split numbers I remember from the Garmin (I'll link up the splits in tomorrow's post):

First 6.5 Mile Loop - 1 hr 5 minutes

13.1 Miles (Half Mary) - 2 hr 8 minutes

15.5 Miles (halfway point) - 2 hr 30 minutes

26.2 Miles (Marathon) - 4 hr 44 minutes

Last 5 miles - 1 hr 26 minutes

Total Time to Finish - 6 hr 10 minutes

Now, I forgot to turn the auto-pause off on the Garmin and it paused every time I used the porta-potty (4), stopped at Aid Station (5), and stopped to stretch (2). I am guessing that will add another 20-25 minutes will be added to the time.

If I would not have got banged up I think I would have finished under 5:30 and probably under 5:15.

Thanks for Reading,

Jeff

50K Trail Run - The Day Before/Gear Review

I keep calling this thing a 50K trail run. Which it is but I got to quit the whole kilometers thing. Dammit I am not a Canadian (although it is snowing right now) from now on it a 31 MILE Trail Run!

Yes, you read that right. It is snowing in Houston right now and it is actually sticking to the ground. Probably only a 1/2"-1" tops but still this ain't supposed to happen here!

Anyways, tomorrow is the big day. I have been getting all my gear together over the last couple of days and have it spread out on the dining room table. For those of you that are wondering what the heck one needs for a trail run I snapped some pics:

This is my nutrition for the day. The GU Gel is 100 calories per pack and the GU Chomps are 90 calories. I plan on taking these while in between aid stations. At the add stations they are going to have fruits and salty foods.

This is my Nathan's hydration pack. I am going to fill these 10oz bottles with Gatorade. The Gatorade is 70 calories per bottle.

Here we have the fanny pack - for carrying my GU. My Garmin 305 and Heart monitor. My Road ID with all my contact information and a race number belt.

Next we have my Nike compression shorts. They are awesome. Some body glide and a first aid kit. All necessities!

Next is my clothing. First at the top is a pair of Injini Socks and a backup pair just in case the first ones go bad. Then I have a Nike knit cap because it is going to be about 28 degrees in the morning with a high of like 42 ...burrr. I am going to wear three shirts: Under armor for the base, Nike Dri Fit over the UA, and then finally a long sleeve breathable cotton shirt as the final layer. If I get warm I can strip of layers as I go!


Next is a pair of Nike windpants, some towels, and my Drop Bag. The Drop bag is what I usually use for transition during Triathlon. I am going to pack this sucker up and then we will have a bag drop area near the stop to keep this. I am passing this area three times during the race so I can access my gear if needed.

Finally a pic of my Salamon Trail Running Kicks and my Pug, Ernie. Ernie will not be placed inside my drop bag!

So there is everything. Well almost, I just picked up a pair of under Armor compression pants and a pair of light weight gloves. With the frigid temperature these will hopefully make the run much more comfortable!

If you are reading this and thinking, "Why doesn't he have _______ on his list?" please drop me a comment. I also have a separate bag with some clothes to drive home in and a cooler with a post race sandwich and more Gatorade and green tea.

This is going to be an interesting event to say the least so wish me luck and if I am up to it I will post a race report tomorrow night!

Thanks for Reading,

Jeff

Mini- Taper: Part Deux

Did another 2 miles on the treadmill this evening. It was freaking cold and crappy this morning and Annie is sick so it was a sleep in morning! Well I guess if 6am is considered sleeping in!

BTW - if you are not watching Friday Night Lights (TV Series, not the movie) do youself a huge favor and go out and buy the DVD's or put it on the Netfilx queue. This show is one of the best on TV right now. I cannot recommend it enough - it is that good!!!!

Anyways, I stopped at the REI on my travels today and picked up some GU Chomps and a fannie pack to wear at the race. It is small but made of heavy duty nylon so it shouldn't hinder me during the run too much. My wife thinks I look like a dork with a fannie pack on. I told her I wear spandex and lycra in public now so the fanny pack is pretty much par for the course!

Next two days will be nothing but rest! Unless my New Trainer shows up tomorrow (-:

Thanks for Reading,

Jeff

Mini-Taper Day: 2.2 Miles

My wife and I are watching The Biggest Loser right now. For some reason neither of us like Amanda. We can't really pinpoint why we can't stand her but she is just annoying and she cries ALL THE TIME. And she has gone '3rd person' on us way too often. She said, ... "Amanda doesn't do marathons!" or "Amanda is in the final four!" Jeff does not like that!

With my 50K race coming up on Saturday I need to reduce my volume this week so that I am at full strength at the starting line - this is called a taper! So today I did just 2.2 miles on the treadmill. It was enough to get my legs lose but not enough to really exert myself. After the run I went over to the open area at the gym and stretched for about 15 minutes. It felt great and my legs really needed an extended stretching session. My IT band has been a little tender and this helped!

Also this was the first time I have been to the gym in about a month. The "people watching" at the gym is freaking awesome. You see all types! There was a group of 5 guys all wearing jean shorts and knock off Ed Hardy shirts. It was like they all called each other ahead of time and coordinated their clothes. They were taking turns doing max lifts Bench presses and were screaming at each other for motivation. At one point I almost fell off the treadmill I was laughing so damn hard. But then again who am I to make fun of people at the gym? One of those jean shorts guys is probably typing on his blog about the goofy looking skinny guy on the treadmill wearing Lycra with 6 different tan lines!

Tomorrow morning I am going to run with Annie and do maybe 3 miles. She is doing 9 miles but that would be too much for my legs. It is raining and cold here in SE Texas so if we wake up and the rain is still coming down we may have to make it another treadmill day.

Thursday and Friday will be rest days and I will go over my nutrition/hydration plan for the race. Not real sure what I am going to do yet but my normal "just wing it" approach may not work!

Thanks for Reading,

Jeff